Street and station indicator.



N.'W. HAWKINSON.

STREET AND STATION INDICATOR.

APPLICATION FILED APR. Io, 1916.

L232A24 Patented JuIy 3, 1917.

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NILS W. HAWKINSON, OF SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-FOURTH TO FLORENCE D. HAWKINSON, GF SANTA ANA,

CALIFORNIA, AND ONE-FOURTH TO JOHN G. GARDNER, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

STREET AND STATION INDICATOR.

Application filed April 10, 1916.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NrLs lW. HAwKrNsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Santa Ana, in the county of Orange and State of California, have invented a new and useful Street and Station Indicator, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of devices adapted to be intermittently operated to successively exhibit the names of streets or stations on street-car, traction and railway lines.

An object of this invention is to provide a practical s'treet and station indicator of very simple construction and few parts.

This street and station indicator is constructed with a ribbon or strip fastened at its ends to two rollers and provided with names of the streets in succession from end to end of the route to be covered by the indicator.

An object of the invention is to make it practicable to utilize a single strip wound on two rollers to exhibit the streets in proper succession from each end of the line.

A diliiculty to be overcome in accomplishing this result lies in the thickness of the ribbon which, as it is wound upon one roller and unwound from the other roller changes the effective circumference of the roller so that if the rollers are of equal diameter and the ribbon is wound from roller to roller by equal movements of the winding roller as the indications run from one end of the line to the other, a reverse movement of the ribbon caused bv winding the other roller will so move thc ribbon that the names that register with 'the sight opening in one direction will not register with such sight opening in the other direction except at the middle of the line.

A n object of this invention is to avoid any diiiiculty from 'this principle of operation and to accomplish this bv extremely simple means.

An object is to provide for ready and convenient change of the indicator from one route to another.

A further object of the invention is simplicity of mechanism for operating the rollers to wind the ribbon from end to end first upon one and then upon the other roller.

Other objects and, advantages may appear Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 3, 1917.

serial No. 90,274.

from the drawings and the subjoined specification and appended claims.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention.

Figure 1 is a broken end elevation of a street and station indicator constructed in accordance with this invention, the operating mechanism being exposed and some of the hidden parts being indicated by dotted lines. Dot-and-dash lines indicate a position of parts at the time of shifting from one street or station to another. The ribbon is shown as being` nearly unwound from one of the rollers and nearly completely wound upon the other roller.

Fig. 2 is a fragmental plan partly in section showing operative parts of the apparatus on the scale of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the street and station indicator shown in Fig. 1 indieating the ribbon as about equally wound upon both of the rollers, neither of which is shown.

Fig. 4: is an end view of the street and station indicator shown in Figs. 1 and 2; the parts being in position shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a broken front elevation partly in section.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of one of the rollers detached, parts of the same being broken away. l v

Fig. 7 is a section on linc 037, Fig. 3.

Fig. 8 is fragment-al view of an indicator ribbon or'strip constructed to accommodate a street-car line extending from 1st st. to 17 8th st.

Some of the parts that are duplicates of other parts are designated by corresponding characters. distinguished by indices.

The case 1 may be of any desired dimensions, shape and form, and be made of wood, metal or other suitable material and may be variously constructed and may constitute the frame to which are journaled the rollers 2, 3, upon which the name carrying ribbon or strip l is wound. The rollers are respectively mounted, on arbors 5 and 5 suitably ournaled in the frame, there being a cross-piece 6 inside the case to support the arbors at one end of the rollers and to allow the arbors 5 and 5 to extend through the mechanism chamber 7 to receive brake wheels 8, 8 and ratchet wheels 9, 9 the 4 cord 13 connected by outer ends of the arbors being squared as shown in Figs. 1 and 3 to receive a key, not shown, by which the rollers may be rotated independently of the step by step operating mechanism which is provided to alternately rotate the rollers to wind the ribbon from one to the other thereof.

A pawl-cperating lever 10 is pivoted to the case by a pivot 11 and extends through a slot 12 to the outside of the case where it may be operated back and forth by any well-known suitable means, pneumatic, electrical vor mechanical. In the drawings the invention is shown as being operated by the means of an eye 14 with the lever 10. Springs 15 are connected by links 16 with the lever 10 to return the lever to a position of rest. The cord 13 may be operated by the hand of the conductor or by the motorman or other attendant located at one side of the indicator. Provision is made for operating the lever also from the other side of the indicator. rihis is effected by means of a lever 17 pivoted to the case or frame by a pivot 18 and extending outside of the case for connection with a cord 19; one end of the lever 17 being operatively connected with the pawl-carrying lever 10 by means of a rigid link 20 pivoted to the operating lever 17 by the pivot 21 a-nd to the pawl carrying lever 10 by pivot 22.

The cord 19 may extend to any place where the operator will be stationed, and is adapted to be operated by an attendant stationed at the left of the indicator shown in Fig. 1.

Pawl-earrying arms 23, 24 are `pivoted to the pawl-carrying lever 10 by pivots 25, 26 on opposite sides of and equidistant from the stationary pivot 11 of lever 10. The arms A23, 24 carry the pawls 27, 27 that are adapted to engage the ratchet wheels 9 and 9 respectively. The arms 23, 24 are respectively controlled by connections 28, 28 respectively operated by fingers 29 and 29. These fingers are revolubly mounted on the frame orcase 1 and adapted to be turned by handles 30, 31 which may be moved simultaneously or independently of each other to adjust one of the pawls into and the other out of operative position.

In Fig. 1 the arm 24 is in position to cause its pawl 27 to act upon ratchet wheel 9 to rotate the roller 3 to wind the ribbon 4 from the roller 2 which is shown practically filled with the ribbon. The arm 23 is lifted to hold its pawl 27 out of engagement with the lower ratchet wheel 9. y reversing the positions of the lingers 29, 29, the positions of the arms 23, 24 will be reversed and the pawl 27 will actuate ratchet wheel 9 thus to wind ribbon 4 onto roller 2.

VIt is to be noted that the operation of the pawls is always effected upon a full movement of the upper end ofthe lever 10 in direction of the arrow thereon, and that this movement may be caused by drawing either cord 13 or 19 in the direction, respectively, of the arrows immediately above the cords.

The springs 32 acting upon the brakewheels 8 and 8 prevent racing of the ribbon that Vis being unwound, and therefore holds the ribbon taut across the sight opening 33 which is preferably formed with a pane of glass let into the frame.

At the upper and lower edges of said sight-opening 33 there are runways a for a slide 34 that is equal in length to one-half the width of ribbon 4, and is provided with a handle 35.

Said ribbon 4 is provided with tw-o sets 36, 37 of the names 38 pertaining to streets or stations along the route to be covered lby the indicator, one set being` arranged on one sid-e and the other set being arranged on the other side of a separating space b, on that side of the ribbon which is to be vexposed to the sight-opening 33. By means of the handle 35 the slide 34 may be slid from end to end of the sight-opening 33 where it may alternatively close from sight the characters in one or the other set as the same may be brought to the sight-opening by the operation of the rollers. n

The rollers 2, 3 correspond to reach other in construction and their arbors 5 and 5 also correspond in construction, and the rollers may be constructed of a plurality of wooden disks i a, which are fixed to the respective arbors. In Fig. 6 such disks are shown as fixed to the shaft 5 and notched at 40 to receive a fastener 41 consisting of a. splint of wood or other suitable material let into the notch and adapted to confine therein the end of the strip or ribbon 4. The space the around the disks between said notches 40 is closed by a shell 42 that may be of pasteboard or other like material bent around the disks and secured thereto by cement or other suit-able means. By withdrawing the fastener 41 the ribbon or strip will be released, thus allowing ready interchangeableness of ribbons from the rollers of one to another indicator.

The front and rear sides of the splint are preferably beveled and the ribbon is fastened to the inner side of the splint by tacks, cement, or other suitable means, not shown, and is then slipped into the notches on the rollers and between the ends of the peripheral shell 42 of the roller; and when the ribbon is wound once around the roller and over the splint the splint is thereby held in position by the winding of the ribbon on the roller.

Behind the sight opening 33 a ribbon support 43 is mounted and the ribbon passes from the rollers in front of theribbon support and between it and the sight opening 33,

'so that as the rollers are o erated by the step by step mechanism 10, 2 9, or the like, a portion of the ribbon is drawn to view through the sight opening.

In order to properly mark the ribbon for the names of the streets on any route, the constructor will turn the rollers to the position substantially indicated in Fig. 1, seeing to it that the ribbon is so fully Wound upon one of the rollers that only suiiicient ribbon is wound on the other roller to maintain the fastening of the ribbon on such roller. Then a marker will mark the position of the names of the first street at the middle of the space exhibited through a sight opening, on

but one side of the separating space b. Then the first or main lever 10 will be operated to move the ribbon one step whereupon the place for the second street will be marked at the middle of the opening and so on the marking will continue to the end of the route. Thereupon the pawls will be set for rotating the other roller to wind the ribbon thereon; and then the other roller will be opera-ted step by step and the places for the streets will be indicated on the other side of the separating space b until all of the streets of the route are thus indicated on that side. In this manner the names of the streets at one side of the separating space Z) will be definitely spaced apart at one end of the ribbon and the spacing thereof will gradually increase in width to the other end of the ribbon, and vice versa, the width of spaces between the names on the other side of said separating space b will increase from end to end of the route in the other direction. Vhen the street names have thus been applied in two rows or columns, as indicated in Fig. 8, the operation of the step by step mechanism in. either direction from any point will invariably bring at least one of the street names into position centrally between the upper and lower margins of the sight opening. In progressing along the route in either direction it is only necessary for the attendant to be sure that the slide 34 is shifted to cover that set of names in which the names are not centered with the sight opening. This shifting of the sliding shield 34C can be effected at any time or place where the direction of the car is changed. That is to say, if the car should be switched back at some point between the ends of the line, it will not interfere with the proper exhibition of the street names. All that Ais necessary is simply to shift the slide into the proper position and to operate the indicator as before.

When the names are located on the ribbon in two sets according to the positions as above indicated, it will be found, when the marking is complete, that the corresponding names of the two sets at the middle of the ribbon will be alined with each other across the ribbon, and that the corresponding names will depart from this alinement toward the ends of the ribbon; the spacing of one of the sets increasing toward one end and the spacing of the other set increasing toward the other end of the ribbon. This difference in spacing will correspond to the difference in diameter of the effective roller in either direction as the ribbon is wound on or off the same.

It is understood that any desired number of indicators can be supplied to any particular car, and that the connections from several indicators may be located at any particular station, and that by means of the reversely-arranged connections 13 and y19 the operation of any indicator from either side thereof is made practical, so that if the operator is stationed rst at one end and then at the other end of his car he may operate the indicator with equal facility at either station.

I claim 1. A street and station indicator comprising a frame; two rollers having parallel axes and being rotatably mounted in the frame, one vertically above the other; a band provided with indicating characters thereon and adapted to be wound alternatively from one roller to the other roller; a ratchet wheel mounted concentrically with each roller and in xed relation thereto, the ratchet wheels being oppositely disposed to each other; a pivot mounted in the frame on an axis between and parallel with the axes of the rollers; a lever mounted on the pivot, the lever comprising one arm extending upwardly on one side of the ratchet wheel for the upper roller and another arm extending downwardly on the opposite side of the ratchet wheel for the lower roller; a pawl pivotally mounted upon the upper arm of the lever to engage the upper ratchet wheel and thereby to rotate the upper roller; another pawl pivotally mounted upon the lower arm of the lever to engage the lower ratchet wheel and thereby to rotate the lower roller; a second pivot mounted in the frame on an axis above and parallel with the axis of the upper roller; a second lever mounted on the second pivot, the second lever comprising one arm extending upwardly and another arm extending downwardly 5 a link positioned above the upper ratchet wheel and having one of its ends pivotally connected with the upper arm of the iirst lever and its other end pivotally connected with the lower arm of the second lever; and means reversely connected with the upper ends of the levers for respectively operating the levers from opposite sides of the indicator.

2. A street and station indicatorcomprising a frame; two rollers having parallel axes and being rotatably mounted in the frame, one vertically above the other; a

ratchet wheel mounted concentrically with each roller and in fixed relation thereto, the ratchet wheels being oppositely disposed to each other; a pivot mounted in the frame on an axis between and parallel with the axes of the rollers; a lever mounted on the pivot and extending upwardly on one side of the ratchet wheel for the upper roller and downwardly on the opposite side of the ratchet wheel for the lower roller; an arm pivotally connected with the lever above its pivot and extending above the upper ratchet wheel; another arm pivotally connected with the lever below its pivot and extending above the lower ratchet wheel; a pawl secured to each arm near its pivot, the arms being adapted to swing downwardly upon their pivots and normally to hold their pawls in engagement with the respective ratchet wheels; means connected with the upper arm but disconnected from the lower arm for holding the pawl of the upper arm out of engagement with the upper ratchet wheel; and means connected with the lower arm but disconnected from the upper arm for holding the pawl of the lower arm out of engagement with the lower ratchet wheel.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 3rd day of April, 1916.

NILS W'. HAWKINSON.

Witness:

JAMES R. TowNsEND.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gommssioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

